From his initial involvement with the first online communities in the 1970s, through founding one of the first personal computer training companies in the 1980s, one of the first wireless data information networks in the 1990s, and the first global angel investing platform in the 2000s, David has been at the forefront of innovation in business and technology.

As an entrepreneurial executive himself, David is the founder and CEO of Gust, which operates the world's largest online platform and community for entrepreneurs and early stage investors. Gust is used by over half a million entrepreneurs in 191 countries to connect with over 70,000 early stage investors.

He is also Managing Director of Rose Tech Ventures; Founder and Chairman Emeritus of New York Angels; Co-founder and Managing Director of the AREA Technology Accelerator; and Associate Founder and Founding Track Chair for Finance and Entrepreneurship at Singularity University, the Google/NASA-sponsored post-graduate program in exponential technologies.

David is Chairman of the Board of Social Bicycles, serves as a board director of KoolSpan; Waywire and Moven, and is an active early stage investor in companies including RealtyMogul, Space Adventures, PerformLine, Magnetic and Urbanr.

David is well known in the business startup community for discovering and mentoring high-potential entrepreneurs, and has been profiled by BusinessWeek as "The Pitch Coach" for his ability to help CEOs perfect their fundraising skills. He is a regular speaker at the TED conferences, and his TEDtalk on How to Pitch a VC has been viewed over a million times. David has been named a Top Writer for five years in a row by Quora, the knowledge-based website where his more than six thousand answer to questions about entrepreneurship and investing have garnered him over 50,000 followers. His writings have been featured in Inc. magazine, Huffington Post, Slate, the Wall Street Journal and Forbes. David is a frequent lecturer at business schools including Yale, Harvard, Columbia, Cambridge, UVA, CUNY, Pace, and Stevens, and he was named Mentor of the Year by NYU's Stern School of Business.

Prior to founding AirMedia Corporation in 1988, for which he served as CEO for over ten years, his career included over fifteen years in real estate development, government, teaching and urban planning. David was co-founder and Chairman of The Computer Classroom and Vice President at Rose Associates, Inc. Earlier, he served as Deputy Director of the New York office of US Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.

A native New Yorker, David has a BA in Urban Affairs from Yale University, an MBA in Finance from Columbia Business School and a D. Eng. (hc) from Stevens Institute of Technology. He is a graduate of PS 6 in the New York City public school system and of Horace Mann High School. He is an Associate Fellow of Pierson College at Yale University and a member of the Entrepreneurship Advisory Boards of Columbia Business School and Yale University. David can be followed online @davidsrose

Book

Book

ANGEL INVESTINGThe Gust Guide to Making Money and Having Fun Investing in Startups

They deliver more capital to entrepreneurs than any other source. And they often receive an incredible return on their investments. They’re angel investors, some of the most important—and least understood—players in business today, whose investments in startups exceed $20 billion per year. Many, if not most, of the world’s largest companies were originally funded by angels—companies like Apple, Microsoft, LinkedIn and Amazon.com. But until now, little has been written about these angels, due in part to their preference for anonymity. ANGEL INVESTING: The Gust Guide to Making Money and Having Fun Investing in Startups (Wiley; April 2014) by David S. Rose provides an inside look at who these angels are, how they operate, and how anyone with six figures to invest can potentially generate annual returns of 25% while funding tomorrow’s industry leaders…and having a lot of fun in the process.

In the past few years, angel investing has moved from an arcane, tiny backwater of the financial world to a business arena that receives coverage in mainstream newspapers and smash hit television shows such as ABC’s Shark Tank. Every year angels invest over $20 billion into startup companies in the US alone (and double that amount worldwide). Historically this been a virtually random activity, but over the past several years angel investing has begun to be recognized as a legitimate part of the Alternative Investments asset class.

With a foreword by Reid Hoffman—co-founder of LinkedIn and a prolific angel investor himself—together with hard research studies and a host of stories from his personal experience as one of the world’s leading angels, Rose explains in this book precisely how angels and venture capitalists differ, describes proven ways for entrepreneurs to attract them, and provides all the relevant resources for investors to enter into the world of startup funding.

Rose tackles all the challenging questions that have long confounded angel investors and the entrepreneurs seeking to attract them:

Who can be an angel…and who should be an angel?

Where do angels find hidden startup gems before the public hears about them?

How should an angel build a portfolio that can return 25% annually over a decade?

What is it like to lose all of an investor’s money? And, conversely, what does it feel like to invest in a failed startup as an angel investor?

What are some common mistakes that inexperienced angel investors make?

Successful angels know that investing in entrepreneurial ventures is more than just providing money. ANGEL INVESTING is the first complete, up-to-date guide to the subject, including what angel investing is, how one gets started, how to find deal flow, evaluate opportunities, negotiate terms, join an angel group, structure investments, and work with venture capital funds.

ANGEL INVESTING includes tools, tactics, and strategies for high-tech, low-tech, and every other kind of early-stage investing. Rose opens the doors to those angels who have limited experience, while augmenting the experience of seasoned investors. Entrepreneurs will gain access to the mind-set of winning angels, and learn how best to win them over, as well as finding information on how to value, structure and bring their companies to a successful exit.

The combination of advancing technology, changing federal regulations, rapidly dropping startup costs and new online investment platforms means that it is now possible for any serious investor to undertake angel investing the right way—and that is what the book ANGEL INVESTING is all about.

Praise

Praise for Angel Investing

Praise

Praise for Angel Investing

"As an angel investor and a long-time fan of David S. Rose, I was delighted to hear he finally captured his wit and wisdom in the pages of a book. David is a born teacher — clear minded, witty and provocative, with amazing stories to illustrate every key idea and insight. Those gifts — as well as his unsurpassed knowledge of his field — are teaching me so much more about investing than I've learned over the years doing it! Read every page of Angel Investing."

Barbara CorcoranReal Estate Mogul, Shark Tank star, Angel Investor

“From the secret economics of angel investing and the best methods for finding and picking tomorrow’s big winners to proven techniques for adding value to any business you invest in, Angel Investing provides readers with everything they need to know to get started in this fascinating, fun—and lucrative—business arena.”

David Bach#1 New York Times bestselling author of The Automatic Millionaire and Start Late Finish Rich, Angel Investor

“This is the most comprehensive and readable guide to angel investing ever written. The chapter on valuation and expectations lays out a clear framework for understanding one of the least well-known pitfalls in the angel world. And its emphasis on creating a win-win relationship with the entrepreneur is at the heart of being a long-term successful angel—and continuing to see the best deal flow. I recommend this book to anyone even thinking about making or receiving angel investments.”

Howard L. MorganFounding Partner, First Round Capital

“The world of entrepreneurial startups is where the most exciting and creative action is happening in today’s business world, which is why I was a strong supporter of the JOBS Act of 2012. No wonder millions of people are wondering how they can get involved as investors. There’s no better place to start than by reading David S. Rose’s Angel Investing.”

U.S. Senator Charles E. SchumerSenate Finance Committee

“David S. Rose’s Angel Investing is the best book on early stage investing ever written. His method of step-by-step explanation is better than any I have read in 20+ years of professional angel investing. I will recommend this to every serious entrepreneur seeking investment as required reading before the effort.”

Keynotes

Keynote Topics

Keynotes

Keynote Topics

Everything You Think You Know...Is Wrong!David S. Rose knows how the world is changing, and what YOU need to know to keep up with it. As one of the country’s most active early-stage investors, he understands how the latest technology is up-ending every facet of every business. In this special keynote session, the expert who has consulted to everyone from startups to Fortune 500 companies will walk participants through the latest developments and technologies that are redefining business in the 21st century. Based on his renowned work at Singularity University, this mind-expanding keynote is a crash-course in the future, covering topics including the Long Tail, Web 2.0, Globalization, and why hyper-accelerating technology is driving the cost of everything to free.

Executive Presentation WorkshopIn the 21st century, the traditional outlined, bullet-point talk is no longer an acceptable corporate tool. Reviled and lampooned as “death by PowerPoint”, it has been replaced by skillfully prepared, graphical presentations designed to close a deal or complete a sale. In this special coaching session, the expert who has trained everyone from pure startups to Fortune 500 companies will walk attendees through exactly how to prepare and deliver a presentation that will get to “yes.” In his unique, dynamic style, David S. Rose will bring to your audience the same state-of-the-art approach seen by tens of thousands of people through his presentations at the TED conferences and other high profile events. He will teach them his 'Pitch Perfect’ techniques for using PowerPoint & other presentation applications; the top ten mistakes made by 90% of all presenters; and the top ten secrets of professional speakers.

No More Companies, No More Jobs...On the Way to a World Without WorkOptimistic futurists such as Ray Kurzweil claim that new technologies will create new jobs in an ever-growing virtuous circle. Pessimists such as the late Kurt Vonnegut project a dystopian future of pandemic unemployment. David S. Rose will unveil a third vision, as developed during his work as Track Chair for Finance, Entrepreneurship, and Economics at Singularity University: that technological development is moving us to a 'post sufficiency' economy, with neither 'jobs' nor a need for them. He will lead an entertaining, eye-opening and thought-provoking discussion tracing the growth of companies, and projecting their future disappearance. Your audience will come away with a completely new perspective on the future and what their role in it will be.

What is The Singularity...and Why Should I Care?The world’s leading experts in artificial intelligence and robotics predict that within our lifetimes computers will exceed human intelligence and will begin designing new systems that are even smarter than they are. This Technological Singularity will usher in an era of exponentially explosive advancement beyond our capability to imagine. As the Founding Track Chair for Finance & Entrepreneurship at Singularity University, the post-graduate program founded by NASA and Google to train the next generation of global leaders, David S. Rose will introduce you to this brave new world in a riveting, interactive presentation about a future that is much closer than you realize.

Introduction to the Internet...for Grown UpsFrom Facebook and Twitter to Blogs and Wikis, Mr. Rose will demystify the neighborhood of the World Wide Web in a presentation designed for intelligent adults. With a highly engaging and illustrated tour through the Internet, he will bring your audience up to speed on the latest developments that are taken for granted by the under-30 crowd. No previous knowledge is required, but by the end of this entertaining talk, you will know the difference between a social network and a networked social, a tag cloud and a cloud application. Consider it “Everything you wanted to know about Web 2.0...but were afraid to ask.”

The Essence of EntrepreneurshipStarting a new venture is simultaneously the most exhilarating and terrifying occupation on earth, and entrepreneurs are the passionate, driven, engines of the world’s economic development. In this inspirational, educational keynote, venture capitalist David S. Rose, described by BusinessWeek as a ‘world conquering entrepreneur’, will regale the audience with stories from the more than 85 companies he has founded or funded, discuss the reality of entrepreneurial life choices, and provide invaluable guidance to current entrepreneurs and those considering starting on their own. This presentation is ideal for business schools, entrepreneurship programs, and business leadership events.

How To Finance Your StartupOne of the most significant challenges entrepreneurs face is how to raise the funding needed to bring their vision to market. David S. Rose, who has both raised and invested millions of dollars of venture capital as one of the country’s leading startup investors, will demystify the options and provide a clear and actionable path to early stage financing. Starting with bootstrapping and ‘free money’ grants, and moving through angel investments, venture capital, and private equity, he will provide a comprehensive guide to everything the high-growth entrepreneur needs to fund a new venture. Among the topics he covers are the qualities that investors look for in entrepreneurs, different ways of structuring startup financing and his popular ‘Secret Economics of the Angels’ chalk-talk.

￼Introduction to Angel InvestingAngel investors, the high net worth individuals who put their own money into backing startup entrepreneurs, regularly see annualized returns of 20%, 30%, even 40%, on their early investments into companies such as Facebook, Google, Apple and Pinterest. In this program designed for high net worth audiences, Mr. Rose, one of America’s leading early stage angel investors, and the founder of Gust.com, the industry’s official platform connecting investors with startups, will reveal the secrets behind getting in on the ground floor in the next Big Thing. He will share stories of triumphs and disasters from the more than 85 high-tech startups in which he has personally invested, including companies that were purchased by Facebook, Google, Intel, CBS and Kodak for hundreds of millions of dollars. This program, ideal for affluent audiences, will guide participants through the world of professional angel investing, and introduce them to all the tools and sources they will need to select and make their initial investments.

Venture Capital Pitch Boot CampMr. Rose, described by BusinessWeek as “The Pitch Coach” and by Forbes as “New York’s Archangel”, knows what it takes to get venture capitalists and angel investors to open up their checkbooks to fund a new venture. As the Founder of New York Angels, he hears more than 500 pitches a year, and routinely sees otherwise great companies turned away because their fundraising pitches completely missed their target. In this special coaching session for high- growth entrepreneurs, he will walk attendees through exactly how to prepare and deliver a presentation that will give their companies the best chance of being funded. In his unique dynamic style, he will teach the top ten rules for fundraising pitches; what your investors are really hearing...despite what you’re saying; how to structure your presentation to walk out with a check; and his 'Pitch Perfect’ techniques for using PowerPoint. David S. Rose’s classic TED talk on “How to Pitch a VC” has been viewed over 800,000 times and is mandatory viewing in business schools around the world. As an optional addition, Mr. Rose can do a live ‘make-over’ of a pre-submitted presentation from the audience, demonstrating the amazing difference his presentation techniques can make.

The Future of Financial MarketsIn this keynote address for sophisticated business and financial audiences, David S. Rose will walk attendees step by step through his famous pronouncement that “any company designed for success in the 20th century is doomed to failure in the 21st” He shows how today’s startup is tomorrow’s multi-billion dollar rock-star, and why alternative asset classes such as venture capital, angel investing and crowdfunding are revolutionizing the global financial markets. Based on his work as Associate Founder of Singularity University, the expert described by Forbes as “New York’s Archangel” will deliver a presentation guaranteed to leave the audience buzzing.

Special EngagementsDavid S. Rose is also available for other activities related to technology, finance, entrepreneurship or presentation skills, including judging business plan competitions, providing one-on-one coaching and corporate business consulting.

Links

Links

Links

Links

GustAs the world's largest online platform and community for entrepreneurs and early stage investors, Gust powers over 1,000 investment organizations in 100+ countries. To date, more than 500,000 entrepreneurs have used the technology to connect and collaborate with 50,000 accredited investors. Gust is also the engine powering the entrepreneurship ecosystems of the world's most active startup hubs, such as Digital.NYC, New York City’s official home for all things tech and startup. Gust was founded in 2004 and is privately held. The company is based in New York, with its European headquarters in London.

New York AngelsThe largest and most active angel group in New York City, and one of the most active in the world, New York Angels has invested over $95 million in entrepreneurial ventures. The group is an independent consortium of over 100 individual accredited angel investors who typically invest $100,000-$1,000,000 in seed/early stage companies, and syndicate deals with angel group partners and VCs up to $2 million. Because of the extensive experience of the membership, the group is receptive to a wide variety of industry sectors.

Rose Tech VenturesRTV is an early stage investment fund dedicated to finding, nurturing and launching the next generation of world class ventures. Among the companies for which it has provided seed financing and mentoring have been Comixology (acquired by Amazon), SetJam (acquired by Google), drop.IO (acquired by Facebook), Mashery (acquired by Intel), LiveLOOK (acquired by Intel), SignStorey (acquired by CBS), Design2Launch (acquired by Kodak), and Pond5 (funded in a $65 million Series A by Accel Partners.)

AREA AcceleratorOne of only two real estate-technology venture accelerators in the world, AREA (A Real Estate Accelerator) is a highly competitive, industry-backed program in New York City for promising startup teams applying new technology-based approaches to solving traditional real estate problems. AREA is focused on Planning, Development, Finance, Construction, Leasing, Management, Brokerage and Clean Technologies, and offers an intensive, three-month, cohort-based program providing seed funding, communal office space an educational curriculum, mentorship, peer support, access to the alumni network and customer introductions

Egret Capital PartnersEgret Capital is a New York-based investment fund that leverages its partners' capital, operational expertise and business acumen to benefit carefully selected small capitalization companies through a comprehensive, structured, value-added approach.

Singularity UniversitySingularity U is a benefit corporation that provides educational programs, innovative partnerships and a startup accelerator to help individuals, businesses, institutions, investors, NGOs and governments understand cutting-edge technologies, and how to utilize these technologies to positively impact billions of people.

Five Roses PressThe Five Roses Press is a private press using traditional letterpress technology to produce books, broadsides and ephemera. It is located in the Book Arts Studio of the National Arts Club in New York City, which it shares with David S. Rose's personal library of books on the history and art of the book.